Inside Storyful: How the Video Team Acquires the Biggest Videos

The Storyful video team is a well-oiled machine of journalists and content acquisition agents, working to add the best videos to Storyful’s library. Team members are in different locations and time zones worldwide, from Dublin to New York, to Sydney and Hong Kong. We’re constantly monitoring social media for the best rising videos. We contact content creators to put in place simple licensing agreements that allow us to manage sales and revenue on their videos.

Discovery is the first vital step in licensing. We want to find the best videos before they ever go viral. As an example, this charming video of a polar bear petting a dog was spotted by one of our team when it was on just several hundred views:

With the help of Storyful, the video reached news outlets worldwide and captured the attention of millions. Our early video discovery is aided by the use of bespoke tools that alert the team to videos across platforms, based on views, performance, keywords, and themes. Journalists trawl through all this content, adding a good dose of editorial savvy and viral know-how to make calls on what content is most suited to licensing with Storyful.

We’ve got to make sure the video isn’t fake, and that we’re in touch with the person who recorded it (for more on how we work to debunk fake videos, see Elaine Carroll’s blog post here). Even if a video isn’t faked, we need to make sure we’re in touch with the genuine owner, and not simply somebody who copied the video. Verification is a priority for the video team: we always ask for background information, and sometimes for additional footage or photos related to the content.

Having determined the authenticity of content, we prioritize contact with the content creator to discuss acquisition. This is where our content acquisition agents really take center stage. They are alerted to the top videos in our chase. They identify the content creator, find their contact details and get in touch by phone or email. Content acquisition agents aim to make a good impression on content creators, explain what Storyful does, and really get people on board with who we are and what we can do for them.

We’re eager to get a video out to our media network as soon as it’s licensed. Our journalists write a story about the video, contextualizing it for clients and partners. They also alert media companies to the video. Media inquiries and opportunities are handed to the media licensing team. We also monetize videos across platforms. It’s important for us to credit the video owner and make the full story of a video available.

There is a long life of potential opportunity for great content in Storyful’s library, even once the initial period of viral interest has passed. Big brands and media outlets alike make use of Storyful’s archive. For example, the last number of weeks has seen Storyful’s archive used by Google in an advertising campaign on Twitter. That’s just one of thousands of opportunities that have emerged from our licensed content. Success for the video team lies in building our library for brands and media clients, representing the biggest videos, and maintaining strong relationships with content creators. We’re working with content creators to get their videos farther than they could ever imagine.

Don’t forget to ask how Storyful can help you create more engaging content with social insights and video.